Book:
Book 1: Where things come back John Corey Whaley (Atheneum Books for
Young Readers July 24, 2012)
Plot
Cullen Witter
lives in Lily, Arkansas which becomes host to a woodpecker sighting, but is it
a hoax? A birdwatcher named John Barling believes he spots a species of
woodpecker thought to be extinct since the 1940s near the town. During the subsequent bird induced chaos
around town, Cullen’s fifteen year old younger brother Gabriel somehow mysteriously
disappears. Thus Cullen must do what he can to keep himself, his family and his
friendships together. While alternating chapters between third person narration
between Cullen and a 18 year old missionary named Benton Sage. The story ends
in an culminating and unexpectedly thrilling way. Whaley’s style of mixing humor
with sadness and drama, a writing style which finds ways to discover beauty and
hope in everyday situations makes this book into a wonderful novel filled with
the juxtapositions and complexities of real life. Even if the situations are
different then our realities, the descriptions, dialogue, and character
development make everything seem very realistic. This story would go well on display with other multi layered
and sophisticated books which directly involve and create a dialogue around the
theme of the meaning of life like Looking For Alaska and Sophie’s World of all
which are surreal or realistic fiction.
Book 2: Chares and Emma: The Darwin’s leap of faith By
Deborah Heiligman 2009 Square fish publishers (Printz honor 2010)
This Heiligman book almost won three awards, the National
Book Award Finalist, Printz award Honor book and it won the Excellence in Young
Adult Nonfiction Award. This book is thorough and beautifully written
biographical expose about Charles and Emma Darwin focuses on their married life
exploring everything about their marriage and life together. All aspect of
their lives from the kids, to the big theological (Emma’s agnosticism) versus
Charles’s scientific understandings is investigated. Emma’s and Charles love is
displayed in all of its complexity and beauty. This tome is a great book that
speaks so eloquently about one of the most important families in the history of
science. The troubles and joys before their marriage are also carefully
detailed, as is Charles Darwin’s troubled and demanding writing life. The death
in their families including two of their children, and troubles with their
health are well documented in this book. The dialogue, like all other details
of the book, is period appropriate, and accurate and factually based. This book
would go well alongside all Darwin related materials.
Book 3: Looking for Alaska: John Green
Miles Halter (a skinny 17 year old who is known
for most of the book ironically as Pudge) is fascinated by all the famous last
words he can possibly learn–and tired of his safe life at home and his
comfortable High School in Florida. He escapes for boarding school in Alabama
to seek what the poet Francois Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps.” The perhaps
that awaits Miles at Culver Creek, includes drinking, smoking, pranks, tricks,
religion class, and Alaska Young. Alaska is daring, hilarious, seriously
troubled, and gorgeous. After a terrible tragedy Pudge blames himself for not
preventing happens, Alaska’s presence never fully disappears from the book, and
lessons abound in this Pritnz Award winner from 2006. The “great perhaps” the existential
conundrum that this book focuses on, is a great philosophical idea repeated
through out the book echoing a theme of existential angst that countless people
must resolve for themselves. This book would do well alongside Where things
come back and Sophies World due to its philosophical imperatives and lessons.
Book:
Book 1: Where things come back John Corey Whaley (Atheneum Books for
Young Readers July 24, 2012)
Plot
Cullen Witter
lives in Lily, Arkansas which becomes host to a woodpecker sighting, but is it
a hoax? A birdwatcher named John Barling believes he spots a species of
woodpecker thought to be extinct since the 1940s near the town. During the subsequent bird induced chaos
around town, Cullen’s fifteen year old younger brother Gabriel somehow mysteriously
disappears. Thus Cullen must do what he can to keep himself, his family and his
friendships together. While alternating chapters between third person narration
between Cullen and a 18 year old missionary named Benton Sage. The story ends
in an culminating and unexpectedly thrilling way. Whaley’s style of mixing humor
with sadness and drama, a writing style which finds ways to discover beauty and
hope in everyday situations makes this book into a wonderful novel filled with
the juxtapositions and complexities of real life. Even if the situations are
different then our realities, the descriptions, dialogue, and character
development make everything seem very realistic. This story would go well on display with other multi layered
and sophisticated books which directly involve and create a dialogue around the
theme of the meaning of life like Looking For Alaska and Sophie’s World of all
which are surreal or realistic fiction.
Book 2: Chares and Emma: The Darwin’s leap of faith By
Deborah Heiligman 2009 Square fish publishers (Printz honor 2010)
This Heiligman book almost won three awards, the National
Book Award Finalist, Printz award Honor book and it won the Excellence in Young
Adult Nonfiction Award. This book is thorough and beautifully written
biographical expose about Charles and Emma Darwin focuses on their married life
exploring everything about their marriage and life together. All aspect of
their lives from the kids, to the big theological (Emma’s agnosticism) versus
Charles’s scientific understandings is investigated. Emma’s and Charles love is
displayed in all of its complexity and beauty. This tome is a great book that
speaks so eloquently about one of the most important families in the history of
science. The troubles and joys before their marriage are also carefully
detailed, as is Charles Darwin’s troubled and demanding writing life. The death
in their families including two of their children, and troubles with their
health are well documented in this book. The dialogue, like all other details
of the book, is period appropriate, and accurate and factually based. This book
would go well alongside all Darwin related materials.
Book 3: Looking for Alaska: John Green
Miles Halter (a skinny 17 year old who is known
for most of the book ironically as Pudge) is fascinated by all the famous last
words he can possibly learn–and tired of his safe life at home and his
comfortable High School in Florida. He escapes for boarding school in Alabama
to seek what the poet Francois Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps.” The perhaps
that awaits Miles at Culver Creek, includes drinking, smoking, pranks, tricks,
religion class, and Alaska Young. Alaska is daring, hilarious, seriously
troubled, and gorgeous. After a terrible tragedy Pudge blames himself for not
preventing happens, Alaska’s presence never fully disappears from the book, and
lessons abound in this Pritnz Award winner from 2006. The “great perhaps” the existential
conundrum that this book focuses on, is a great philosophical idea repeated
through out the book echoing a theme of existential angst that countless people
must resolve for themselves. This book would do well alongside Where things
come back and Sophies World due to its philosophical imperatives and lessons.
Book 4: Why we
broke up by Daniel Handler
Min Green is a bitter and hurt mismatched old movie obsessed ex girl
friend of Varsity basketball team co-captain and total jock Ed Slaterton. Min
(short for Minerva) is intent on showing her pain in her words and her symbolic
sending of a box filled with many trinkets and curiosities of their wild high
school love affair. The fun Min
and Ed have together as well as their intimate moments and their miss matched personalities
and odd sense of humor are all flushed out in detail. Through explorations of their
joys, their confusion, while readers join them in their high school love
escapades, and half planned adventures. The raw betrayal Min endures because of
Slaterton’s ruthless cheating. The
awkwardness of being intimate and steady with someone while having “friends” of
the opposite gender, and still knowing your ex-lovers are both investigated in
specific detail along with Min’s inner most feelings and pain. I think that
this book would go well with other Young Adult break up books.
The “Why we broke up project” is a
follow up by the author Daniel Handler, and it is an impressive resource to
share break up stores and a great idea to help people who have recently broken
up or need closure and healing from a break up through sharing and reading
breakup stories. The project is located at http://whywebrokeupproject.tumblr.com/
Great books - great reviews!
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